Principle, Glossaries
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Principle, GlossariesCommunication

RS-232C

What is RS-232C?

It is one of the serial interface standards for communicating between devices established by the Electronic Industries Alliance (IEA) in the United States.

Signal level

RS-232C sends signals using 0 (space) and 1 (mark).


The voltage level is 0 for +3 to + 15V and 1 for -3 to -15V.

Standard, method

Cable length Transmission speed Number of connectable units I/O methods
15m or less 20kbps 1 : 1 Unbalanced type (single-ended)


Unbalanced (single-ended): A single signal line is used to represent a signal by the potential difference from ground. Compared to balanced RS-422, it is more susceptible to noise and cannot be used for long-distance, high-speed communication.


The connector is specified to use D-SUB 25 pin or D-SUB 9 pin, and the pin arrangement is specified as follows.

Pin arrangement 25 pins

Pin No. Signal name I/O Content(original standard)
1 N.C (FG) - Not connected(Housing GND)
2 TxD OUT Transmission data
3 RxD IN Reception data
4 RTS OUT Transmission request
5 CTS IN Transmission possible
6 DSR IN Data set ready
7 GND - Ground
8 DCD IN Carrier detection
9 N.C - Not connected
10 N.C - Not connected
11 N.C - Not connected
12 N.C - Not connected
13 N.C - Not connected
14 N.C - Not connected
15 N.C - Not connected
16 N.C - Not connected
17 N.C - Not connected
18 N.C - Not connected
19 N.C - Not connected
20 DTR OUT Data ready
21 N.C - Not connected
22 RI IN Called indicator
23 N.C - Not connected
24 N.C - Not connected
25 N.C - Not connected

Pin arrangement 9 pins

Pin No. Signal name Alias I/O Contents
1 DCD CD IN Carrier detection
2 RxD RD IN Reception data
3 TxD SD OUT Transmitted data
4 DTR ER OUT Data terminal ready
5 GND SG - Ground
6 DSR DR IN Data set ready
7 RTS RS OUT Transmission request
8 CTS CS IN Transmission possible
9 RI CI IN Called indicator
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